Foxtail Millet and Broken Wheat Dosa (Navane and Godhi Rave Dose)

This is the first post for a new category of posts that I want to write every week – Diabetic Friendly Recipes. Before going any further I just wanted to share one of the myth busters about diabetes.

“Myth: People with diabetes should eat special diabetic food.

Fact: A healthy meal plan for people with diabetes is generally the same as a healthy diet for anyone – low in saturated and trans fat, moderate in salt and sugar, with meals based on lean protein, non-starchy vegetables, whole grains, healthy fats and fruit.” (Source: American Diabetes Association (ADA))

Although almost all the recipes on my blog are whole-grain based, low-fat recipes, having a specific category helps people looking out for these recipes. It also allows me to share any relevant nutrition information along with the recipes 🙂

Did you know? Uncontrolled diabetes can lead to several serious complications and in fact Diabetes causes more deaths a year than breast cancer and AIDS combined (See more at: ADA)

I wanted to start off this series with a great breakfast idea – something that packs in a ton of nutrition and tastes good too 😀 I love dosas (savory crepes) for breakfast – I generally make instant wheat or oat dosas. (You can find a lot of those recipes on my blog already) I wanted to try out a different combination and opted for foxtail millet (Hindi: Kangni; Tamil: Tenai; Telugu: Korra; Kannada:Navane; Malayalam: Thina) and cracked/broken wheat(Hindi: Daliya, Kannada: Godhi Rave). I added some spices like fennel seeds and chillies to up the taste. And some fenugreek seeds and lentils add in more nutrition 🙂

I must warn you though, any modified recipe is going to give a whole new taste – each grain has its own uniqueness. Experimenting is a great way to figure out what works for you. These recipes are mere guidelines- feel free to modify as per your taste/preference. That being said, the millet and wheat combination gives a wonderful rustic taste. The dosa is slightly soft and you need to cook it carefully. These also need to be cooked a little longer than the traditional dosa. I have tried it several times and I have never had to adjust the ingredients – but in case you feel the dosa is too soft and you can’t get it off the pan, add some rice flour or semolina. Serve this with some chutney for a great breakfast.

Ingredients

2/3 cup broken wheat

1/3 cup foxtail millet

4 dried chillies

1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)

1 tbsp urad dal

2 tsp methi/fenugreek seeds

Salt to taste

Oil for making dosas

Preparation Time: 4 hours soaking + 10 min

Cooking Time: 20 min

Servings: 8-10 dosas

Method

Wash the broken wheat and millet thoroughly in water 2 or 3 times. Soak this in a large bowl with 2 cups of water.

To this bowl, add the ingredients listed 3-6. Let this mixture soak for about 4 hours.(You can even soak it overnight if that is easier)

After soaking, drain the excess water out into a cup – we will use this while grinding the batter. Add the mixture to a blender, add water as required to blend into a fairly thick batter – you don’t want a runny batter as the dosas won’t come off the pan. You can store the batter in the refrigerator for 1-2 days.

Once you are ready to make the dosas, take out as much batter as required. Add salt and adjust the water consistency.

Heat a flat skillet (preferably non stick for this dosa). Brush very little oil on the pan. Adjust the heat to medium – pour about 1/4 cup of batter and smoothen it out. Don’t make the dosas too thin. Close a lid and let the dosa cook on one side. Then slowly flip it and let the dosa cook on the other side too.

Once cooked on both sides, it is ready to serve. Before making the next dosa, sprinkle some cold water on the hot pan to bring the heat down and repeat the process.

Disclaimer: I am not a trained nutritionist/doctor – I do my research while writing for the blog. However please consult your doctor before taking on any diet changes.